Since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, there’s been a concerted effort on the state and national level to institute gun control.

To discuss this topic, Crosstalk welcomed Mike Hammond. Mike has spent the better part of his career in government service. He has been a legislative counsel to Senators Bob Smith, Gordon Humphrey, Jesse Helms and Steve Symms. Mr. Hammond was a member of the Department of Education transition team and the Department of Justice Transition team. From 1977–1989 he served as General Counsel to the United States U.S. Senate Steering Committee. He presently serves as a political consultant and writer, as well as General Counsel for the Gun Owners of America.

According to Mike, within the next four weeks, history will be made as President Obama stakes his legacy on being able to break the back of the gun lobby or we will teach him the lesson that our constitutional rights transcend his legacy.

Tomorrow it’s estimated that the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote out the Feinstein gun bill, a bill that would ban most semi-automatic weapons. How does he know this? Mike believes it’s a “red herring” or “throw away” bill that will cause some Democrats to vote against it, making it appear as though they support the 2nd Amendment while these same legislators will then vote for other types of gun control legislation.

On the state level, Colorado has implemented a universal gun registry while demanding that gun owners pay for their own background checks. Also, a Florida legislator wants ammunition buyers to take an anger management program consisting of online or face-to-face instruction that must be repeated every 10 years.

On the other side of the equation, some states are enacting legislation to empower citizens. For example Arkansas is moving to legalize the carrying of a firearm in a church. In South Dakota and Oklahoma they are enacting legislation to allow school staff members to carry firearms in schools.

Would examination via universal background checks lead to registration, to investigation, to confiscation and then to tyranny? You connect the dots and make up your own mind when you hear the other anti-2nd Amendment related efforts discussed on this edition of Crosstalk.